Harlem Hamfats
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The Harlem Hamfats was a jazz band formed in 1936. Initially, The Harlem Hamfats primarily provided backup music for jazz and blues singers, but when their first record "Oh Red" became a hit, they launched what would become a moderately successful recording career.
The name 'hamfat' derives from early 20th century slang in which the word was used to designate something as second-rate or a poor substitute. There is some disagreement about the roots of the word. Some believe it refers to a 'hamfat' cut of meat, which was cheaper and of poorer quality than the lean part of the ham. Others hold that it refers to a method black face comedians had of adhering burnt cork makeup with hamfat. Regardless, the name was most likely adopted in a spirit of facetiousness since by all measurable standards the bandmembers were quite talented.
Despite the name, none of the members of the band were actually from New York. Joe McCoy (g, v) and Charlie McCoy (g, m) were from Mississippi; Herb Morand (tpt, v), John Lindsay (b), and Odel Rand (cl) were from New Orleans; Horace Malcolm (p), Freddie Flynn (d) and Pearlis Williams (d) were from Chicago. The diverse geographical backgrounds of the musicians may have played a strong role in the band's sound, which which blended blues, dixieland and swing jazz.
The Harlem Hamfats were not known to be the most innovative group of the time, and over the years their staying power as an early leader of the jazz and blues musical forms has been challenged. However, they are still considered an important contributor to 1930's jazz, and their early riff-based style would help pave the way for rhythm and blues and later Rock and Roll. Many of band's original works dealt heavily with sex, drugs and alcohol, which may have hindered their music from being more widely available.
Their most recognizable work may be the modern jazz tune "Why Don't You Do Right?", which was written by Joe McCoy and included on their 1936 record under the title "The Weed Smoker's Dream". The song had numerous drug references. The lyrics were later changed and the tune refined. Lil Greene recorded it as "Why Don't You Do Right", a tune about a coniving mistress and her broke lover, in 1941.
[edit] Lyrics
HOODOOIN' WOMAN by The Harlem Hamfats
Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, why don't you let me be? Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, take that, take that stuff off me! You got me fixed so I can't hardly see.
Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, why don't you right your wrong? Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, please, let me alone! You raise hell all day and all night long.
Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, stop spreadin' stuff 'round me! Aw, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, quit burnin', burnin' candles [at spree]! You're bound for hell, oh, you just wait, you just wait and see!
Aw said that, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, see all the trouble, all the trouble you've made! Ah, hoodooin' woman, hoodooin' woman, you've lost, you've lost your head! You better go back to Algiers before I kill you dead!
